Author: Scott D. Yost

The North Carolina Department of Health and Human Services (NCDHHS) announced on Tuesday, April 7, that it is providing financial assistance to help essential workers afford child care – and it’s also offering bonuses to child care teachers and staff who are providing that care during the coronavirus crisis.

It’s not easy being in the transportation business during this period of pandemic existence, but Ward 5 High Point City Councilmember Victor Jones is trying to make the most of it for his company, Royal Limousine, which has begun publicizing itself as the safest way to take a trip to the store or anywhere else right now.

There are a whole lot of meetings, gatherings and get-togethers that have been put on ice due to the coronavirus pandemic and that holds true for local Alcoholics Anonymous (AA) meetings, places where constant peer support is absolutely critical.

Homelessness is a big problem in Guilford County during normal times.

The State of North Carolina announced this week that it wants to draw out all the manpower and womanpower it can find in its effort to have an adequate number of medical professionals to address the pandemic that’s expected to get a lot worse before it gets better.

North Carolina government has been taking numerous simultaneous steps to address the threat of the coronavirus – and that’s turning out to be a major multi-front war for state health officials and others leading the response.

On Thursday, April 2, The New York Times published a story that collated anonymous cell phone data from a data analytics firm to determine where in the United States people were still traveling the most during the coronavirus crisis – and Guilford County showed up near the top of the list.

There’s always so much going on at any Sheetz in Guilford County that the businesses seem more like a little self-contained city than a convenience store/restaurant/gas station/meeting place.

Many, many businesses and government services are on hold right now, but one essential service that’s not on hold is the service provided by the two Guilford County Family Justice Centers, offices that are there to prevent and respond to domestic violence, child abuse and elder abuse, and similar threats.

The City of High Point has joined the list of local governments that are holding meetings but not letting the public attend due to health concerns from the coronavirus pandemic.

Nationally, there’s been a loud call from many experts for more surveillance testing for the coronavirus – the testing of members of the general population who don’t exhibit any symptoms.

The Guilford County Board of Commissioners is practicing what it’s preaching: In the age of the coronavirus, the county has canceled its Thursday, April 2 meeting, and any business scheduled will have to be put on hold until a later date.

Guilford County has seen a steady increase in the number of coronavirus cases to strike its residents, and on Tuesday, March 31, Guilford County government made the sad announcement that the county had experienced its first death due to the disease that has gripped the entire planet.

On Monday night, March 30, Guilford County government issued a second, amended, Stay-at-home order that clarified some aspects of a previous order and that put in place even tighter restrictions meant to help reduce the spread of the deadly coronavirus.

The coronavirus pandemic has thrown a lot of things into disarray, and one of those things is the state’s open meetings law.

On Monday, March 30, the City of High Point sent out notice that, in response to the coronavirus pandemic, the offices at High Point City Hall for the city’s Inspections Services Department, Permit Center and the Planning and Development Department will be physically closed to the public beginning on Wednesday, April 1, 2020.

There’s a joke about a man who fell off a 100-story building, and, after the first 99 floors of the fall, he said to himself, “Well, so far so good.”

The novel coronavirus has forced major changes in the way just about everyone and every organization operates, and that’s also true of Say Yes Guilford – the four-year-old non-profit that attempts to help students in Guilford County Schools afford college by offering them everything from direct grants to assistance in finding financial aid from other sources.

The deadly coronavirus took a while to get from China to North Carolina, but it’s now crystal clear that any hope the state had of escaping the dramatic effects of the pandemic is gone. At the end of the day on Friday, March 27, the running online counter provided by the NC Department of Health and Human Services reported that the state had 763 confirmed cases and three deaths.

Just about every way in which the coronavirus has affected the world has been negative – however, many homebound Spectrum customers in Guilford County and in other parts of the Spectrum service area across the country are learning that there’s one perk of the crisis.

There are very few things in life that haven’t been affected by the now ubiquitous coronavirus – and one more thing that can be put on that long list is the new school bond referendum that’s been planned for the November ballot.

One week ago, the Guilford County Sheriff’s Department put into effect changes that made it harder for people to get concealed carry permits, and, on Wednesday, March 25, the Sheriff’s Department announced that it was halting the service completely for the time being due to concerns regarding the coronavirus pandemic.

On Tuesday evening, March 24, Guilford County released an amended State of Emergency Declaration along with a video message from Chairman of the Guilford County Board of Commissioners Jeff Phillips.

How can you hold a public hearing without letting the public into the meeting? That was one question Chairman of the Guilford County Board of Commissioners Jeff Phillips, Commissioner Skip Alston and Guilford County staff dealt with on Tuesday, March 24 when they met to discuss how to handle the county’s upcoming Thursday, April 2 meeting.

The coronavirus pandemic has wreaked havoc on most people’s 401(k) plans and it has also been doing some damage to the 2019-2020 Guilford County budget that was approved last summer.

Anyone who’s watched the news in the last two weeks knows that one of the coming big demands during the coronavirus pandemic is a need for more medical facilities – and now a High Point business, better known for creating spaces at trade shows, is taking part in that effort by adding temporary medical spaces to its line of offerings.  

The coronavirus pandemic has changed just about everything regarding life as we knew it, and, on Monday, March 23, the City of High Point announced big changes to the city’s transportation services, ones that will be in effect until further notice.

Guilford County government was schizophrenic this week when it came to holding meetings while the county and the world are in the grip of the coronavirus pandemic.

Knowledge is power and that’s something that Guilford County and the State of North Carolina have very little of right now when it comes to accurate numbers on coronavirus testing.

These are trying times but that still doesn’t give people the right to have 67 pounds of marijuana in their house – which is what the Guilford County Sheriff’s Department deputies found at a house on New Garden Road this week.

The popular saying states that the third time’s a charm, but that’s certainly not the case when it comes to the fact that, on Thursday, March 19, Guilford County announced the discovery of the third case of coronavirus in the county.

Not all that long ago, thieves would steal and transport things like money or jewelry or computers, but a new crime report from the Guilford County Sheriff’s Department shows that the world is now definitely in a new era.

The Guilford County commissioners over the years have shied away from addressing controversial issues unless those issues were thrust upon them and they were cornered into making a decision.

On Tuesday, March 17, the City of High Point joined the City of Greensboro and Guilford County in declaring itself to be in a State of Emergency.  

On Tuesday, March 17, the Guilford County Sheriff’s Department announced that the coronavirus pandemic would mean a temporary change in the way county gun permits are issued and also cause a suspension of the department’s fingerprinting services.

In light of the coronavirus – officially “COVID-19” – pandemic, the Social Services Division of the Guilford County Department of Health and Human Services is now accepting food and nutrition applications and renewals electronically.

Just about every event in Guilford County – and across the country for that matter – has been canceled this week. However, one is still set to go on as scheduled. On Thursday, March 19, the Guilford County Board of Commissioners will hold its regular meeting, and, for what’s thought to be the first time in the county’s history, members of the media and other members of the public will not be allowed in.

These days it’s a safe assumption that any event that was planned has been canceled or postponed – and that maxim is holding true even for those events scheduled for over a month from now.  

Everyone knew it was just a matter of time and now that time is here. On Tuesday, March 17, Guilford County officials announced that the first case of the coronavirus was found in the county.

Guilford County has just gotten a new print publication – the Summerfield Scoop.

The reach of the coronavirus is being felt everywhere and Piedmont Triad International Airport (PTIA) is certainly one of those places.

Guilford County government has declared a State of Emergency due to the coronavirus outbreak.

On Friday, March 13, Duke Energy announced the steps the company is taking to make sure that power is not affected during the coronavirus crisis and the company also announced that it is suspending all disconnections for non-payment.

On Friday, March 13, health officials with the State of North Carolina explained the difficulty the state is having in getting virus test materials and they also announced new guidelines for reporting test results to the public.

Guilford County hasn’t had a confirmed case of the coronavirus yet, but when the virus does arrive here, the Guilford County Health Department will be the lead agency in the fight against its spread.

Guilford County’s jails are, by their very nature, always locked up – however, now, with the threat of the novel coronavirus, they’re becoming even more locked up.

Gov. Roy Cooper’s Novel Coronavirus (COVID-19) Task Force – which was set up earlier this year to combat the threat of the virus that’s now spreading – is holding a meeting on Thursday, March 12 in the State Emergency Operations Center Situation Room in Raleigh in order to discuss what actions can be taken to mitigate the spread of coronavirus, or COVID-19, in North Carolina.

Greensboro Roller Derby is kicking off its 2020 season with a completely free event – its first-ever “Fan Fest.”

The highly respected and important Site Selection Magazine has shown Guilford County some love in the past and now it’s done so again.